Too Obvious
by CreedKeeper
Summary: Kaiba as Kira? No one believed it for a moment, especially not L. Except, that was what they were counting on. Seto framed, Mokuba kidnapped, L confused, and Light outraged. A conspiracy is underfoot.
1. A bad day that just got worse

Too Obvious

Kaiba as Kira? No one believed it for a moment, especially not L. Except, that was what they were counting on. Seto framed, Mokuba kidnapped, L confused, and Light outraged. A conspiracy is underfoot.

* * *

It began as a low rumbling, easily overlooked, warning though it was. As the meeting drones on the volume rose until the growl was clearly audible from the back of his throat. The next speaker hesitated, glancing at his CEO before launching into his on spiel about funding for the latest addition to the park. Sure, he was in a bad mood. Wouldn't he be in a worse mood if his employees stopped working because of it?

"And in conclusion with increased funding to the virtual development team we will be able to increase the projected revenue by a margin on seven percent in the next year."

"Thank you _Parker._ Now is there anyone else here interested in wasting my time? I've read your reports already, I was unaware this was a meeting for you to review them word per word."

"I-I-I'm sorry sir, I only thought I would-"

"No, obviously you weren't thinking this through. Your proposal is shoddy and missing the two greatest arguments in your favor. Get the latest figures from accounting, check the Gazette for Tuesday's editorials and I expect for a report with substance to be on my desk by Friday at the latest. Masters, I'll be assigning you to supervise this project. Despite the poor presentation the idea has merit. Work on the specifics and I'll talk to you directly about the budgeting issues." The venom voiced teenager rose deliberately, turning his back on his 'valuable employees'.

He strode into the elevator as if daring anyone present to object to his sudden departure. Just before the doors closed a deceptively small arm stopped them in their tracks. His brother slid inside without a word, looking worriedly at the near permanent grimace. The ride down was awkward, made more so by the inappropriately cheerful music 'subtly' humming through the speakers. Seto made a mental note to get that taken care of. Permanently.

"So... exciting meeting, huh?"

"'Exciting' is a term that would apply as much as 'productive' or 'awe-inspiring'. For him to dare to waste my time on a project I assigned over three weeks ago without having done the proper research... I'm being generous giving him an extension. Two days should be more than enough to get his act together. With the holiday crowds and competition this weekend is much too important for me to keep doing this." He sighed, allowing himself a moment of vulnerability before hardening his visage. Mokuba was one person he could let his guard down with, at least to an extent. Aside from him, few would see more than a stormy gaze and a sharp tongue.

Seto shifted his briefcase imperceptibly, this would be a long day.

"Eight?"

"Eleven. No later."

* * *

Seto closed the last of his files and stood precisely at 10:50. He walked calmly and efficiently at the pace he was accustomed to. No, Seto Kaiba would not _drudge _through his own company's walls. He would not _wallow _or delay. Seto Kaiba will arrive exactly when he means to and to hell with anyone who tried to stop him. The majority of the admittedly few workers that stayed late were intelligent (or had enough survival instinct) and followed this implicit order. He greeted his driver with a nod harsher than deserved.

"The hotel, sir?" Beckett was unperturbed, a trait that had kept him the job after a line of others. Another nod led them toward the Pardemont, his third abode in as many days. The Castill had been his first choice until an untimely media leak had taken an annoying amount of time to squelch. Holsendain was next but upon examination was declared a potential threat to security and the brothers had left in a number of hours. The Pardemont was exceptional, but Mokuba had taken offense to a snotty bellhop and the overall lack of technological entertainment, so the likelihood of remaining for the rest of their week was slim.

The ride was short at least. Location was a primary factor and in that department succeeded swimmingly. Seto brushed past the greeters, ignoring their halfhearted salutations to make his way to the second elevator. He stood to the side as a loud, smirking blond man swaggered past on his phone.

On the seventh floor Seto stopped, nearing his door key card in hand. The handle was lowered about an inch from horizontal. Odd, but not entirely significant. What made him stop cold was a soft metallic click that sounded as he brought it back up. A trap, then. Mokuba was still inside. Seto checked around the hall briefly before opening his briefcase and pulling out a slim pistol. That done, he signaled an emergency from his phone and reached for the handle again. He tensed and pushed it open with his bag as he threw the handle down and hid behind the left side of the frame, expecting a hail of bullets or some visible threat. Met with nothing but silence, he relaxed his stance and stood calmly.

The older Kaiba warily glanced around the corner, quickly drawing back his head. The coast was clear. He entered a moment later, his eyes taking in every detail as he held his gun steady. Nothing. Not a single paper was out of its proper pile, there was not a single wrinkle he had not left there that morning. This was even more unusual as Mokuba himself would have made more of a disturbance than this if he had come at all. Fighting to maintain his paranoia in the eerie, pristine room, he checked the cabinets. Then the drawers. Every closet and small hiding place was examined soundlessly. Not a single object looked anything but perfectly innocuous. Preparing to send a recall notice to his alert and dismiss his concerns as unfounded, he stood. Click. The same click echoed through his room but this time was accompanied by a familiar creak coming from his door. He dashed towards it when a thin red playing card fluttered down from the ceiling before him. By reflex, he caught it and his world turned red.


	2. Surrounded by incompetence

Red heat. Fire. Blast. Door. Card. Pain.

Fingers twitched, first one and then again before clenching into a fist and then releasing the tension. Not quite daring to move, Seto cracked one eye open hesitantly and then another after the blinding headache didn't change. Blinking, he took in his surroundings, willing the high pitched tone to stop ringing through his ears.

He was in a bed. From the white walls, he assumed it was a hospital. Without moving his head he could see bandages around the tips of his fingers and a nervous nurse checking the monitor beside him.

Seto opened his mouth and croaked out a question before clearing his throat loudly. "Mokuba?"

"Oh! You are awake. Here, let me get that from you. Now, that's quite a scare you put us through- calling in an emergency and then getting yourself all blown up like that. If you had time to press the button, you could have gotten yourself out of there all the same!"

"Mokuba."

"I mean, here we were on a quiet evening, just about to leave for the night with the next shift trickling in. Bam! Your little alert goes off and all of a sudden this place is flooded with panicking busybodies with nothing better to do than get underfoot! And you come in here all unconscious without a single 'I'm sorry' or 'thank you'. Selfish, that's what that is."

"Mokuba. Now."

"And all we get is a little, teensy bit of warning and you show up on our doorstep half dead expecting us to drop everything about and do something about it. Now, let me tell you mister-"

"WHERE IS MOKUBA?"

"No need to get snippy there. I don't really know where he is. Why do you want to know, anyways?"

"Get me someone who knows where he is NOW."

"Sheesh, alright alright. No need to yell. Be right back, sunshine!"

Seto groaned as he recognized the next face to walk through the door.

"Good morning, sir! When I heard you were hurt I rushed straight over here to see you and wish you a full speed recovery. And then when I was on my way I was struck full of inspiration and really thought 'Wow! I think I'll check my mailbox today.' You'll never guess what I found. In last Tuesday's Gazette there was a certain special tutorial all about how much people love the new V-systems at places like Kaibaland! Isn't that amazing that they just keep writing these articles? It occurred to me that I should tell you all about it so you would feel better about yesterday."

"Parker, do you know where my brother is?"

"Mr. Mokuba? I'd've thought he would have come visit by now, you being his brother and all."

"Parker. You are fired. Get out, stop talking, I don't want to see your face within 300 meters of me for the next six months."

Kaiba closed his eyes, too exhausted to do more than shoo away the annoying buzzing noise with a halfhearted dismissal.

* * *

"Mr. Kaiba, wake up! I hate to disturb you but this man says he must see you immediately, it involves your brother."

With a start Seto sat up, turning from unconsciousness (with Kaiba it is never truly rest but a temporary break) to an expressionless and authoritative presence. "Where is he?"

A tall, dark haired man in a tan suit answered him hesitantly while another stood blocking the doorway. "Well, you see Mr. Kaiba, the thing is, if you look at this from a certain perspective, really we could say that-"

"Where. Is. My. Brother?"

"When we find him you'll be the first to know." He flinched at the hardened stare and barely controlled featured of the teenager. "Here is what we know: Mokuba entered the hotel at approximately 8:30 Wednesday evening and went missing some time between that time and 11:03 when your room was discovered." He looked at Seto expectantly.

"...And...?"

"And any evidence as to his disappearance seems to have gone up in smoke. Literally!"

"Please, for the love of God, tell me I'm not paying you."

"Certainly not, I work for the metropolitan police department here in-"

"If this is the best the police can do, consider this a private affair. I'll investigate myself, so consider yourself removed from the case."

"R-Right, well, best of luck to you Mr. Kaiba."

Seto snarled in disgust as the simpering man slunk away, his partner closing the door gently behind him. He never saw their sharkish grins and mutual sardonic smirks. Seto fumbled for his phone before noticing it placed conveniently on the stand beside him.

* * *

L was not happy. This is not to say that L was not a particularly happy person to begin with, or that his unhappiness was singularly unusual either. Merely, today was a day frustrating enough to ruin even the semblance of a good mood he usually assumed out of courtesy.

The chair next to him shifted uncomfortably. "But these weren't even criminals..." Matsuda half whispered in confusion. "Well, at least we don't know that they were. Their records are clean! Why would Kira do this? Money? This isn't his style at all! Bad guys are one thing, but business men? Not cool." Matsuda flopped, disheartened.

"This is unusual... The likelihood of each of these company heads independently committing crimes deemed punishable by Kira is extremely slim. Either we have some international conspiracy here underway, or he has changed targets completely."

"But why would he do that? Eleven different CEO's, presidents, managers, and consultants all drop dead of heart attacks at the same time after a week of nothing!"

A soft, familiar voice was heard through L's earpiece. "Eraldo Coil has been contacted by a certain Kaiba Seto is regards to a kidnapping case. The victims seem to have been his main suspects. His younger brother went missing two days before their deaths, the same day you were called in to investigate six of the eleven for suspicious behavior. He may have hired others to look into the remaining five and it is a connection we can not afford to overlook."

L blinked slowly as he worked his way through the possibilities. No, it was too obvious a solution. The conclusion was so simple it might as well have screamed 'attention! Attention! Look over here!' Not like Kira at all. Or like Kaiba, for that matter. From what L had heard of the man he was brilliant and ruthless, subtle enough to buy out his own adoptive father and design a system of virtual software that could pass off as reality. Yet, he was also conspicuous enough to actually own a private jet shaped like a dragon. No, still not his style. If anything it deflected any suspicion away from him because no one would ever believe him stupid enough to leave such evidence lying around. Unless, that was what he wanted people to think. Regardless, it was clear that someone wanted L to notice Kaiba and draw conclusions. Was Kaiba gambling on his reputation? Had he hired Kira, confident in being cleared of suspicion? Was he being framed from a distance or used as a distraction? No matter the reason, the bait had been set. All that was left was to pull the line and see who came looking.

"Inform Mr. Kaiba of the loss of his competitors and arrange a meeting to discuss the disappearance face to face."

* * *

Special thanks go to unrealscorpion for leaving the first review!


	3. Surely you jest

"Mr. Kaiba I am glad you could make it here on such short notice." The elderly gentleman offered a stiff, professional handshake to an equally humorless Seto Kaiba before coughing gently into a pale green handkerchief.

Seto's mouth was set in a grim line, sleepless eyes peered through methodically combed hair. "I am exceedingly busy but Mokuba will always be my first priority."

"Then let's do away with the pleasantries. Do you remember anything unusual about your brother's behavior that day? Any anxiety, quarrels, unusual paranoia...?"

"No. He was the same as he always is and we had plans to meet at 11."

"I believe you mentioned briefly searching the room before the explosion. Did you sense anything out of the ordinary? Sounds, smells, moved or misplaced objects?" He expected little. If the elder Kaiba had any pertinent information he would surely have added it into the police report or revealed it in their initial request for his recount of the night. Most likely the trauma of being caught at that range would cause enough of a distraction for even a first hand account to become unreliable.

"When I first entered the room there was- no. Before that, when I was waiting outside the door I heard a click. Right before the explosion I heard it again. Nothing was out of place or even slightly disturbed as would be the norm with Mokuba. Nothing was missing, nothing was new. I checked the drawers as well."

"Describe this 'click' you heard. Was it short or long? Low, sudden, high, as if from a latch...?"

In response Seto opened his silver briefcase and took out his pistol. Gesturing noncommittally, he pointed it to their left and clicked the safety off and then on again. He repeated the sound once more and replaced the gun.

With a frown he added, "There was one more thing." Seto drew out a card from his white trench coat's pocket and displayed it with familiarity. The red card was singed but otherwise unremarkable. "The Jack of Diamonds from a standard set sold in convenience stores in every country." He snarled a bit at the thought before clarifying. "It fell from the ceiling before it blew."

'Eraldo Coil' schooled his features into polite disinterest before accepting what was possibly their only solid lead. "Very well. Is that everything?"

"That should be all Mr. Coil. Do you have the information I requested on the possible suspects?"

Coil gave Seto a long and unwavering stare. "Mr. Makamoto, Mr. Vangor, Mr. Ellisley, Mrs. Sonoka, Mr. Anjeski, and Miss Rinz all perished last night at 9 pm, four hours after I was contacted for this search."

Kaiba froze for a moment before retreating to feigned disinterest. "I am sorry to hear of the loss of such distinguished individuals" -pretentious, condescending bastards that they were. "How did they die?"

"Heart attacks. Simultaneously. Kira seems to have had them targeted for some unknown reason. Would you happen to know why? You knew them quite well apparently but aside from each making an enemy of your company they seem to have very little in common."

"I'm not sure what you are implying, Mr. Coil. While I would not be sad to see them go, now that they are gone the likelihood of any of them being involved in this case is very low, and thus they are completely irrelevant."

"Do you know of any other connection between them?"

"Not all businesses are as clean as they appear. If Kira saw fit to see them die, they must have deserved it."

"Then you support these murders and the criminal who plays god with human lives?"

The room's tension was impenetrable as Kaiba replied frostily. "I fail to see how my political beliefs are relevant to this investigation. Mr. Coil, I am a busy man. Since they are no longer suspects I ask that you now look into the recent activities of the Freya corporation with Ms. Michiko Yakami, Mr. Pieter Ioricson of Ioric and Sons, Mr. Florence Gana of Starlight Systems, and Mr. Jean Lucienne from the publications branch of NextStep Generations. All have fired serious allegations towards my businesses and threatened my family personally on more than one occasion."

"What about Gloria Daniels?"

"Old news. We cleared up any misunderstanding between us a few weeks back and have been working towards a partnership in interactive gauntlet copyrights. Why her?"

"Because, Mr. Kaiba, along with Miss Daniels every name you have mentioned tonight was a victim in the murders last night by Kira. They were all your enemies, or past enemies, whom you would think to accuse of a kidnapping. Tell me, boy, is this one big 'coincidence'?"

Kaiba paled considerably, aghast at the thought of Gloria's untimely death. "Why would Kira... I liked her. Every deal was very straight forward, no back room, no under the table bargains... That was the cause of any tension in the first place, she took some standard suggestions as insults to her integrity."

"Yet she, along with 10 others, make up a lengthy list of your dead enemies. You know how this looks, _Mr. Kaiba_?"

"I'm being framed, aren't I?" Considering the circumstances, he was strangely calm.

"Are you, Mr. Kaiba? If not you, it _appears _to be a supporter of yours, or would enemy be more accurate?"

"Do I need my lawyer, Mr Coil? I won't pretend to squander tears on those-" He stopped himself at the look on the detective's face. "Recently deceased individuals, but even if I were to decide to 'kill off my competitors' it would be financially or politically first, reputations make for sweeter revenge. More to the point, I wouldn't leave such glaringly obvious conclusions around for any halfwit to string together."

"So you see our dilemma."

"...Our?"

"Ah, yes. Let me introduce myself properly. I am not Eraldo Coil. You may call me Watari, currently of the Kira task force situated in Tokyo." He extended a hand with a surprisingly genial, grandfatherly smile, contrasting his previously threatening aura. "I believe it for the best that we arrest you now to save the trouble of setting this up for later."

"Arrest? After expressing belief in my innocence? I don't have time for this. I have a multi-billion dollar company to run, my brother is missing, I'm surrounded by incompetence, and I DO NOT HAVE TIME TO DEAL WITH THIS! How much are you after, one million, three? I'm calling my lawyer."

"You misunderstand me, Mr. Kaiba, and your situation. Someone has decided to call you Kira and see how the world responds. In the morning the papers will be filled with speculation regardless because of the obvious connection of the latest victims. Someone has been close enough to manipulate you into making first contact with us and someone has taken your brother. Was it a coincidence Eraldo Coil was the detective you contracted? That you arrived back at the hotel just in time to be hospitalized? They wanted us to find you and we have. You can surely arrange a vacation from work for a few days without it falling to pieces. Coming with me to headquarters is the best chance you have of finding your brother again."

"That's it? Your master plan to find a killer is to do what he wants and wait to see what happens? If he manipulated this all along why would I ever go along with a kidnapper's scheme?"

"I trust we will have your cooperation. Publicly, you will have been arrested while in secret you will be working with us to search for your brother's kidnappers.

"Do you have any idea what that news would do to my reputation? I'd be ruined, and for what? For a fool's plan of appeasement? Give me one good reason to take these risks."

"Mr. Kaiba I have enough authority to arrest you with or without your consent. I can hold you captive in a solitary detention center squandering public tax dollars on an unnecessary precaution waiting to declare you safe to return to the public. However, if we do so we _will _be playing right into Kira's hands and wasting your time and mine. Instead, this could be our way to turn the situation around and possibly end this series of deaths once and for all."

"You leave me no choice then."

"No, Mr. Kaiba, one always has a choice."

* * *

This chapter's thank you goes to fakescorpion for reviewing. Sorry I haven't brought in much L yet, but you will be seeing much more of his next chapter.


	4. Clarifying semantics

Custody, if a sealed limousine with police officers could be referred to as such, was not a situation Kaiba was particularly accustomed to. Then again, he was not particularly accustomed to accusations of murder from elderly gentlemen either. Usually just certain adolescents with grudges and a penchant for mumbo jumbo and emotional whining. With an irritated sigh he observed his companion of circumstance. The windows were bullet proof and opaque, leaving his location to be a vague estimate within his mind of calculations of approximate speed and direction over carefully monitored time.

Watari was driving carefully while kindly giving the impression he was NOT in fact observing the fuming teenager. The third occupant had no such reservations for his dignity. After bombarding the youth with incredulous exclamations Matsuda had eventually settled down into an unabashedly curious stare which went as ignored as his previous questions had. All would be explained eventually and this time would be better put to use planning to salvage his company's reputation rather than telling a story he'd only have to repeat.

Meanwhile Watari took advantage of his distraction to tap a small device inside his starched collar, calling L to provide an update. A master of sub vocalization, it appeared to the world as if he were silently concentrating on the road ahead. His words were barely loud enough within his closed lips for the microphone to pick up his response.

"Incoming in ten. Resentful but reasonable. Gloria not intended. Low patience. Easily provoked. Brother is key. Condones Kira. Other targets named."

"Very well, bring him to the forth floor. Framed or not we need to keep him in our sight."

* * *

L cleared his throat to get the room's attention. Without Matsuda and Watari the task force was down to himself, Light, Mr. Yagami, and Mogi. With Misa's constant presence that brought the number up to four more people who would need to be informed about their "guest". "The common link between the recently deceased is the mutual animosity between themselves and a certain Mr. Seto Kaiba who is currently being retrieved by Watari. In return for his cooperation in this investigation we will be searching for the whereabouts of his younger brother, Mokuba Kaiba."

Their reactions were immediate, though some more pronounced than others. Mr. Yagami gave a professional nod though his comprehension showed clearly. Mogi blinked slowly before adding a simple "Kaiba Corp's Seto Kaiba?"

Light's reaction, or lack thereof, was of the most interest to L. After coming out of a 53 day lock down to prove his innocence in the matter, Light had thrown himself into the investigation with a naïve zeal L might have encouraged or even admired in normal circumstances. However, these were not normal circumstances, and seeing his rival in the games of wit reduced to an optimistic, though admittedly still brilliant, child had been extremely frustrating. Where was the competition? The thrill that had come to associate with his closest friend and adversary? At first it was easy to deem an act, the next level of their game of cat and mouse, but recently it was fading into a predictable and friendly acquaintance, losing the spirit it once held.

He had changed, and as much as it galled L to admit even to himself, it was becoming increasingly clear that Light is not Kira. He clung to the idea of selective amnesia or a dissociated identity or something, anything to prevent being flat out wrong. The facts all pointed in his direction, but in light of recent evidence... He could not hold it in good conscience. L glanced again at Light's expression, mentally chastising himself for desiring an outcome before collecting all data first. Light still shone with a hopeful and determined visage, looking excited at the prospect of coming closer to catching the infamous 'god of death'. L was disappointed.

As suspiciously innocent as Light appeared, L would have been glad to know his obsession was well founded, if not for the explanations he had considered. Ever an actor, Light gave no outward sign of his unease though inside he was fuming as he plotted. Someone was using his notebook to take out business associates? How... utterly selfish! Whether he killed them himself or is being framed, someone is tainting the name of Kira with common greed, this is not the justice he had worked towards!

Rem had been given the notebook and explicit instructions to find someone to use it, but if they were too easy to catch or recklessly emotional L would never buy it and he would have his work cut out for him shifting the blame into this new player.

Light smiled broadly, snickering inwardly at L's almost imperceptible grimace. This persona hadn't always been an act, but ever since his memories returned it was easier to play along as if nothing had changed than alert the man of his cunning. "That's great! So let's find out his connection to Kira and bring justice for the murders. It's been a while since we've had so many clues. Soon we might be able to wrap this up and protect the world!"

* * *

This is not a competition, Seto reminded himself. Even so, he refused to look away from the dark, probing stare. It was unnerving, and Seto Kaiba was not one to be unnerved. Ever since he had entered the room there had been an uneasy silence perpetuating between them until it had turned into some juvenile game of seeing who would give in and break the silence first. He clenched his jaw and crossed his legs, daring the other to comment. This was ridiculous, an utter waste of their time. It wasn't even as though they were alone! Their contest had an audience, Watari and Matsuda from the limo as well as three others: a textbook cop, a serious one, and a teenager. All five looked increasingly uncomfortable from what he could see from the corner of his eye, but the one in front of him appeared completely unconcerned.

The game ended not because he gave up, for Seto Kaiba never lost (despite certain murmurings referring to his rivalry with the king of games), but because he chose to be the more mature one and take the higher road, thus proving his moral superiority in being more humble since he allowed the other the chance to 'win'. Not that he really lost, of course. "As fascinating as I'm sure I must be to you, surely we have more productive matters to apply ourselves to." At this he stood and turned his back to his annoyance, greeting the born-to-be-a-cop with a professional handshake. "Seto Kaiba, SEO and president of KaibaCorp and world champion duelist."

"8.9 minutes." The black haired observer unfurled from his position perching on the chair and cocked his head to the side. "What are your priorities?"

Mr. Yagami shifted uncomfortably as he realized L was being ignored until his response was given. "Chief Director of Police Yagami, and this is my son, Light and Mogi. It appears as though you know Matsuda and Watari already. This is-"

"L I would assume."

"Ryuzaki. We are the task force appointed to end Kira's reign of tyranny and save the Japanese populace from the fear of this serial killer."

"That's nice. I was kidnapped here and told you could find my brother."

"I believe you mean 'arrested'. You were wanted for your connection with the one currently killing off businessmen in your name."

"I meant what I said. I am not a murderer and have none employed amongst my staff. As for the connection, the ostentatious display points so blatantly it should be obvious the killer is no friend of mine. It requires only minimal intelligence to see this as the set up it is and calling it an arrest of playing along with their game. What do you mean 'currently'?"

"We believe this is someone new, a different Kira from those who had been acting previously."

"So this is the second? That implies the method used can be applied by more than one individual... ability or artifact?"

"Third actually. The Second seemed to specialize in pop culture variety shows and obeyed the First's orders explicitly."

"What makes this a third and not a change in tactics?"

"The recent actions change more than targets. The First Kira's motivations stem entirely from a misplaced sense of justice in ridding the world of criminals, those he sees as deserving of death in the cases the current justice system in unable to act on. The Second is a follower, supporting the First by killing criminals as well as police officers who go after Kira and FBI agents, protecting the First though they were not originally working together. This Third seems to be much less calculating than the First and without guidance, acting in the heat of the moment for personal gain or revenge. Furthermore, in the past week not a single death has been reported from unnatural heart attacks rather than your enemies."

"And because this Third is so... personal you think I am acquainted with him."

"It would fit the psyche profile. Do you have any enemies yet among the living? Any deranged fans with magic powers?"

With a condescending smirk he answered "It would be easier to give you a list of friends than enemies, I have made far too many through my success."

"More likely his personality..." Matsuda mumbled under his breath.

"As for 'deranged fans' I'll see which ones have been released back into society recently." After an odd moment of silence he clarified. "Sarcasm. I hope."

* * *

Once again I'd like to thank fakescorpion for the review, I'll try to put in more L for you later as it goes on. I hope this answered your questions about the timeline, but to make it clear this takes place a week after Light is released from custody with his father and Misa, before when in the books the Yotsuba company would have started killing off their competitors with the death note. Also, if anyone is interested in being a beta for this story, mostly for plot and character ideas, let me know.


End file.
